Wearing apparel



WEARING APPAREL Filed Nov. 15, 1945 'INI}ENTOR. [7745A hf HILL/WANATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 1, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WEARINGAPPAREL Ethel H. Hillman, South Pasadena, Calif.

Application November 13, 1945, Serial No. 628,033

1 Claim.

This invention relates to wearin apparel and deals more particularlywith improvements in a garment known as a blouse or shirtwaist, or othergarment desired to be secured at the waist.

An object of this invention is to provide an improved blouse embodyingmeans aifecting the proper fit thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide a blouse with noveladjustable means whereby the blouse may be properly fitted to the waistof the wearer.

Another object of the invention is to provide a blouse which isadjustable both to the size of the wearers waist and to vary the degreeor amount of the fullness of the gathers at the waist.

A further object of the invention is to provide a blouse which willfirmly maintain its position around the waist of the wearer and will notcreep up out of a skirt or other lower garment.

The above and other objects of the invention will become more clearlyapparent from the following description of the blouse which is shown inthe accompanying drawing and which embodies a preferred form of theinvention.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a blouse or shirtwaist embodying theinvention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary open inside view thereof.

Referring to the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the blousecomprises generally a back 5, sides 6, a plurality of pleats or tucks Iin the back and sides and provided in the waist area of the blouse, andmeans 8, engaged with the material forming said pleats or tucks, forseparably and adjustably fastening said waist portion of the blouse inplace on the waist of the wearer.

In practice, the back 5 may be provided with two pairs of tucks l andeach side 6 with a pair of tucks so that the blouse is generally fullerin its upper part and loosely converges toward its bottom edge 9. Saidtucks I extend upwardly from said bottom edge and are maintained againstopening or separating by stitchin l0. When so formed, each tuckcomprises a fold of material in the form of a tab ll. Each tab or thosedesired is provided with a plurality of longitudinally spaced andarranged button-holes or the like 12. As shown said button-holes arearranged in plural transverse lines or rows.

The means 8 is shown as comprising a length of string or tape I3 passedthrough the buttonholes l2 and having ends I4 extending beyond theoutermost button-holes 12 of the blouse.

When the blouse is donned and before it is buttoned up, the ends E4 ofthe tape l3 are tied together as shown in Fi 1 so as to accommodate thewaist of the wearer. The torso length of the wearer is also fitted byselecting the proper line of button-holes 12 through which to string thetape 3. The variable positions of the tape also allow for Obtaining adesired fullness of the gathers formed in the blouse when the tape istied. It will be noted that the waist portion of the blouse is notpressed or pulled against the body, but rather only those tabs II whichhave the button-holes I2 and the tape l3 itself engages the body,leaving the remaining waist portions of the blouse to fall in softgathers which can be readily adjusted into desired position.

Although the construction described .is relatively simple, it providesadvantages which hitherto stitched-in tapes or belts did not have, andoffers opportunity for draping the blouse heretofore difficult toobtain.

Despite its simplicity, variations and modifications within the conceptsof the invention may be constructed. Therefore, no restriction in thescope of the invention as claimed is intended by the specific disclosureabove set forth.

I claim:

A garment of the type indicated comprising a back area, side portionsterminating at a bottom edge, a plurality of tucks extending upwardlyfrom the bottom edge in said back and sides, a line of stitching in eachtuck to form a tab on the inner side of the garment, at least one tab oneach side and at least two tabs on the back being provided with upperand lower button holes arranged in upper and lower transverse lines, and

a tape passed selectively through said lines of button-holes.

ETHEL H. HILLMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 884,185 Mayper Apr. 7, 19081,560,218 Coopersmith Nov. 3, 1925

